DICKSON CITY — State Attorney General Josh Shapiro on Saturday, recalling the discrimination Irish immigrants faced when they came to the United States, blasted the prejudice that exists today.
(read more)

Car insurance rates are at an all-time high nationwide and rates are rising fast in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre/Hazleton area, according to a recent study by The Zebra, a car insurance comparison marketplace.
(read more)

Article Tools

JAKE DANNA STEVENS / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER A letter writer wants the city to hold tree-trimmers to standards that protect trees and their aesthetic value. Here, a trimmed tree on the corner of Ash Street and Monroe Avenue in the Hill Section.

Alternative viable;

resolve contract

Editor: Mike Mahon, the superintendent of Abington Heights School District, wants teachers to pay $3,600 to $6,000 a year for health insurance. The district would get more than $1.5 million from the teachers to offset health care costs. That would cover about 30 percent of the district’s total health insurance cost.

Teachers would each contribute the equivalent of a monthly payment for a very nice car. In return, Mr. Mahon is offering an extra $500 per year in salaries. The catch is you don’t get paid if the year is already over.

A change in health insurance offered by the teachers will save a minimum of $550,000 in the first year it is implemented. Add in the $650,000 in savings in the second year and we wonder why $1.2 million is not enough savings for Mr. Mahon and the school board.

Would you choose to save half a million dollars offered willingly or would you forgo that in hope of an out-of-pocket contribution from people who are earning the same amount they made in 2010?

When is half of a million dollars not enough? Apparently, when you are Mike Mahon and the Abington Heights board. They would prefer to see the teachers of Abington Heights moving backward.

The teachers are willing to work with the district to realize substantial savings in health care. We cannot shift the cost of insurance to the backs of the teachers when there are savings to be found through program changes.

We ask that the district works with us to provide teachers with a fair and competitive wage. It seems odd that Mr. Mahon is planning for a September strike instead of planning meetings to resolve the contract. Settle this contract. Stop ruining Abington Heights.

JIM MARIA

PRESIDENT

ABINGTON HEIGHTS EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

Help from ‘friends’

Editor: When Gov. Tom Corbett goes down to defeat in November, I wonder if it will be recognized that his loss was in large part due to “friendly fire” — the Republican “leaders” of the General Assembly who stalled his noble initiatives.

Two critical achievements that have eluded Mr. Corbett have been to finally privatize sales of alcohol, and to enact reforms to begin reducing the deficit in the state pension funds, which has metastasized to about $50 billion and rising.

Those who have failed to allow the governor to succeed have provided campaign fodder for gubernatorial opponent Tom Wolf, who will no doubt argue that Mr. Corbett is an ineffectual leader, unable to pass signature legislation even in a House and Senate controlled by the members of his party.

Although the state House passed bold legislation to eliminate the state store system, the Senate said, “Not so fast; we have other ideas.” Thus far, no agreement has been reached which would be acceptable to 26 of the 50 state senators. Mr. Corbett initially proposed to alter the future pension benefits of current state employees but has indicated flexibility on the matter. Not only have the House and Senate refused to consider the changes the governor proposed, but the members have been unwilling to consider any plan to avoid looming fiscal calamity, demonstrating the same intransigence and bullheadedness that they have for decades on the issue of property tax relief, which continues to be “debated.”

Mr. Corbett is not the most dynamic, charismatic figure one could imagine to lead Pennsylvania, but let us remember that he is not solely responsible for his unpopularity. State Senate and House Republicans have sabotaged him.

OREN M. SPIEGLER

UPPER SAINT CLAIR,

ALLEGHENY COUNTY

Relief for horses

Editor: Every week, 24 horses die on racetracks across the country because of preventable injuries, and every year, 10,000 “broken-down” racehorses are sent to slaughter.

Most horses do not retire, but are sadly transported away from the racetrack to end up in slaughterhouses in Canada, Mexico or Japan, where they are turned into dog food and glue. Their flesh is also exported to countries such as France and Japan, where it is considered a delicacy.

Horse racing is best described as institutionalized exploitation of baby horses. Imagine being pushed beyond the point of exhaustion: the bones in your legs straining to hold up the weight of your body, your bleeding lungs incapable of taking in enough air, and you’re forced to keep running despite it all. This is what life is like for racehorses who are chronically drugged by trainers in order to mask their pain and enhance their performance.

We all know the famous horses that died for the sake of this cruel sport — Ruffian, Barbaro and Eight Belles — the latter who died on the track by breaking both front legs after finishing second in the 2008 Kentucky Derby.

Please contact your U.S. representative and senators and ask them to support the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2013, Senate Bill 973 and House Bill 2012, which would increase oversight and penalties for overusing drugs in horse racing.

SILVIE POMICTER

PRESIDENT

VOICE OF THE ANIMALS

CHINCHILLA

Protect trees

Editor: Following up on my previous letter (“Rare beauty axed,” May 11), it is important to control the irresponsible actions of utility companies that destroy Scranton’s trees with impunity in the name of maintenance.

I suggest that prior to any work on trees, the companies apply for a permit from the city on a task-by-task basis. The permit would require that the company pays for a licensed landscape architect who is responsible to the city to monitor the work while it is being done. Photographs of before and after would be made part of the record.

The trimming would be done in accordance with professional standards that protect the trees and preserve their aesthetic value.

It is up to the mayor and city council to write and pass the proper legislation quickly to put a stop to the egregious and careless actions of those who have no concern for our city’s landscape.

EUGENE OGOZALEK

SCRANTON

We welcome user discussion on our site, under the following guidelines:

To comment you must first create a profile and sign-in with a verified DISQUS account or social network ID. Sign up here.

Comments in violation of the rules will be denied, and repeat violators will be banned. Please help police the community by flagging offensive comments for our moderators to review. By posting a comment, you agree to our full terms and conditions. Click here to read terms and conditions.